As is well-known, there are technical elements, such as wind energy turbines, that, in order to get the most out of their features, are installed in offshore locations, instead of on land. These locations, however, pose fastening problems, due, on the one hand, to the uneven depths that the sea floor may have at the chosen location, and what is more, due to the stress they must sustain from both the wind and the pounding of the waves.
In reference to the current state of the art, it is worth mentioning that, while a number of solutions to these problems are known, few of them are truly effective in economic terms.
Along these lines, it is worth pointing out that the most similar document known is patent application US20110037264A1, which relates to a “Column-stabilized offshore platform with water-entrapment plates and asymmetric mooring system for support of offshore wind turbines”. Said application describes a floating wind turbine platform that comprises, at least, three stabilizing columns, each column having an internal volume for containing a ballast fluid; a tower that is coupled to the platform; a turbine rotor coupled to an electrical generator, mounted proximate to the upper end of the tower; main beams interconnected to the three stabilizing columns; plates situated at the lower end of the stabilizing columns; and a ballast control system for moving the ballast fluid between the internal volumes of the three columns to adjust the vertical alignment of the tower. Said document claims a floating platform, a method for deploying a semi-submersible platform, and a method for operating a floating wind turbine platform.
Although the platform described in said document is called semi-submersible, it is in fact a floating platform, since the majority of its volume floats above the surface, i.e. a large portion of its constituent columns is outside of the water, while another portion is submerged. As such, the waterline cuts through the entire structure, the column bodies, and it is totally affected by the movement of the waves. The waterline is the line formed by the intersection of the plane formed by the surface of the water, or sea level, with the structure (for example a ship), separating the portion that is submerged from that which is not. Said waterline can vary depending on the load or the conditions of the water. This type of structure works like a ship (center of gravity above the center of buoyancy). This means that the pump system for stabilizing it and keeping the tower upright must compensate the overturning moment, against both the pounding of the waves and the wind. The platform incorporates plates at the bases of the columns to prevent overturning and to dampen the vertical pitching movement, i.e. vertical up and down movement, and must be completely assembled on land and subsequently floated to location.
Lastly, another of the drawbacks of the subject matter of said application is that, since it mentions that the columns may be built by welding together uniform diameter tubular sections, it may be inferred that it is a structure meant to be built out of steel, leading to limitations in terms of the economic costs of both manufacturing and maintenance, as well as useful life, due to the effects of the marine environment.
It would therefore be desirable to have a platform that eliminates such drawbacks, allowing for greater flexibility both during construction and during installation, which, as has already been indicated, is the aim of the present invention.